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Physiocracy: a Viewpoint of the Role of Agricultural Production in a Macroeconomic System University of Montana ScholarWorks at University of Montana Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers Graduate School 1994 Physiocracy: A viewpoint of the role of agricultural production in a macroeconomic system Ronald A. de Yong The University of Montana Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.umt.edu/etd Let us know how access to this document benefits ou.y Recommended Citation de Yong, Ronald A., "Physiocracy: A viewpoint of the role of agricultural production in a macroeconomic system" (1994). Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers. 8674. https://scholarworks.umt.edu/etd/8674 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at ScholarWorks at University of Montana. It has been accepted for inclusion in Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks at University of Montana. For more information, please contact [email protected]. m Maureen and Mike MANSFIELD LIBRARY TheMontana University of Permission is granted by the author to reproduce this material in its entirety, provided that this material is used for scholarly purposes and is properly cited in published works and reports. Please check ”Yes ” or **No and provide signature Yes, I grant permission No, I do not grant permission Author’s Signature :or commercial purposes or financial gain may be undeitaken author’s explicit consent.____________________________ Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Physiocracy : A Viewpoint of the Role of Agricultural Production in a Macroeconomic System by Ronald A. de Yong Presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts University of Montana 1994 Approv^ by ^ Chairman, Board j^f Examiners Dean, Graduate School Date Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. UMI Number: EP39475 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. UMT Ot*swrt*tiort AjMmhmg UMI EP39475 Published by ProQuest LLC (2013). Copyright in the Dissertation held by the Author. Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code ProQuest LLC. 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. de Yong, Ronald A., M.A., March 1994 Economies Physiocracy: A Viewpoint of the Role of Agricultural Production in a Ms^c^oeconomic System Director: Michael Kupilik This is a study of the economic philosophy of physiocracy from its discovery in France in the 1700s to the present. The contributions of several 18th and 19th century economists influenced what could be called 20th century physiocracy. Further research in the area of physiocracy was done by an accountant named Carl Wilken in the 1930s. Premises of 20th century physiocracy were incorporated into agriculture policy in the United States in the 1940s. This policy was called parity economics. Examination of agriculture policy in the United States from World War I to the present provides the context for examining parity and non-parity policies that have developed in attempts to achieve adequate food supplies at fair prices for both consumers and producers. Parity programs provide the mechanism for 100 percent parity, based upon the ratio of prices that producers receive for their products, to prices that they pay for their inputs, using either the base years 1910-1914 or 1946-1950. These base years have historically been chosen because of the economic prosperity that the United States experienced in those time frames. Parity was generally achieved from 1910 to 1919 and also from 1942 to 1953, with the latest period being achieved with specific legislation designed to accomplish parity. A cheap food program, which in more recent years has been referred to as an export program, has been the policy used in those years when 100 percent parity was not the goal. This is the basic program in existence today, which is up for renewal or change in 1995. This study further examines the differences between these two basic models based upon an econometric model developed by the Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute (FAPRI). The model reveals dramatic differences in producer incomes and government costs, as well as minor differences in consumer costs. The author uses Wilken's hypothesis to expand the FAPRI model with an analysis of national earned income that results from each program. The consequences that less than adequate national earned income has on private and public debt accumulation is also examined, again according to Wilken's hypothesis. ii Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Economie Reports of the President: of the United States and Economic Indicators compiled by the U.S. Government are the main sources for the empirical data used. List of Tables Table 1 : WHEAT .... 68 Table 2 : CORN .... 69 ili Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Acknowledgment s My father, Henry de Yong, was a farmer who read and understood history as it evolved. I thank him for his inspiration and my mother Sylvia for her openness and sense of humor. My wife Dee and my three children must be applauded for their support during a very busy time of our lives. I would also like to thank Helen Waller, A1 Schmitz, Mark Ritchie and Doug Young for their generous help in finding support materials. Committee members Michael Kupilik, Ron Dulaney, and Myles Watts spent many hours reading my thesis, offering excellent advice. Their efforts are greatly appreciated. I am also in debt to many people too numerous to mention that gave support and guidance. Author's Background B.S. in Agriculture Science from Montana State University B.A. in Philosophy from Montana State University Assistant Supervisor for Farmers Home Administration Program Specialist for Agriculture Stabilization and Conservation Service Economics instructor at Flathead Valley Community College Own and operate a family farm Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Table of Contents Abstract .................................................... ü List of Tables .............................................. i ü Acknowledgments and Author's Background ................. iv Table of Contents ...........................................v 1. Early History of Physiocracy ......................... 1 2. Failure of the Market to Self Regulate .............. 11 3. Society Determines Distribution .................. 18 4. Producer Income ........................................ 23 5. Consumer Income .......................... ............ 25 6. Earned Income versus D e b t ............................ 29 7. U.S. Farm Policy: Depression to World War II . .34 8. Post World War I versus Post World War I I .......... 46 9. Recent Farm Policy: Decline of Parity Concept . 51 10. Farm Policy Today: Export Emphasis ........... 64 11. Problems with Present Policy ......................... 78 12. Parity Program versus Present Program ............. 81 13. C o n c l u s i o n ............................................. 88 14. Bibliography ........................................... 90 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Physiocracy : A Viewpoint of the Role of Agricultural Production in a Macroeconomic System Chapter 1 Early History of Physiocracy This is an examination of a paradigm that was first expressed by Francois Quesnay, a physician in the court of Louis XV and personal doctor to Mme. Pompadour.^ Inspired by William Harvey's discovery that blood circulates in the human body, Quesnay hypothesized that wealth originated with production from the land and then flowed from hand to hand with trade transactions providing income for the nation.^ A belief that agriculture is the first and primary step to survival has philosophical roots dating back to the domestication of plants and animals. There was no need to question this basic premise or even expand upon it until the market system had essentially replaced traditional and authoritative systems of organization. The emergence of national political units and the growth of national loyalties and spirit, in combination with increased ^Robert L. Heilbroner, THE WORLDLY PHILOSOPHERS (New York: Simon and Schuster, Inc, 1986) 49. ^Ryan C. Amacher, PRINCIPLES OF MACROECONOMICS (Cincinnati: South-Western Publishing Co., 1992) 48. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 2 participation in the market system, raised the question of how a nation becomes wealthy. Mercantilism dominated eighteenth century economic thought with the basic premise that accumulation of gold and silver through any means necessary was the route to national wealth. English, Spanish and
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